Tyson Tiree Smith Arrested in Shooting of Two USC Students in Dispute Over Headphones

Updated at the bottom with an arrest. First posted at 8 a.m. on Sept. 6.

Two USC students had to undergo surgery following a shooting at a party near campus over the weekend, according to reports and police.

One of the victims, a male undergraduate shot in the chest, was said to have been stabilized after being admitted to California Hospital Medical Center in critical condition. The attack was reported Sunday at 2 a.m. in the 1200 block of West 37th Place, authorities said.

According to police and the USC Daily Trojan, it all started over a pair of headphones:

According to the Trojan, the suspect opened fire after a resident of the same apartment complex confronted him about allegedly stealing expensive headphones.

The two people who were shot apparently had tried to intervene. Student Gueston Cordae Smith told the paper:

We were dancing and having a good time, and all of a sudden the victim turned on the lights and was acting really angry. [The resident] said that his headphones were stolen ... and then walked up to the shooter.

Dennis Romero has worked on staff at several magazines and newspapers, including the Philadelphia Inquirer and the Los Angeles Times, where he participated in Pulitzer Prize-winning coverage of the L.A. riots. His work has appeared in Rolling Stone online, the Guardian, and, as a
young stringer, the New York Times.